This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. The Specific Aim of this core is to mentor and develop the growing number of infectious disease, environmental health, and health disparities investigators at principally undergraduate institutions (PUIs), tribal colleges, and the state's two research universities to sustain and grow an even more productive and competitive biomedical research network. The Core focuses on careful mentoring of Project Leaders and investigators through multidisciplinary mentoring teams and annual evaluation of projects. The evaluation process involves the External Advisory Committee, the Scientific Advisory Board, and Core Directors. Mentees receive feedback and discussion of their work, helping them to refine their research plan and milestones for the coming year and explore possible grant and publication opportunities, as well as potential collaborations and consultants. Thirty-three research projects in the areas of infectious disease and environmental health, including 8 social and behavioral science projects, three exploratory research studies on health disparities, and, through an administrative supplement, 2 CBPR projects with Native communities (all noted in the Administrative Core Report) and 5 projects in the CBPR and Health Disparities Core are supported by MT INBRE. Projects are located at five of the state's baccalaureate colleges, all seven Tribal Colleges, the University of Montana (Missoula), and MSU. The Research Core focuses on 15 of these projects. Project Leaders from this Core are continuing their well-established research projects into INBRE II, with increased emphasis on securing additional extramural funding to sustain their research programs, publications, and moving, overall, to the next level in both their research and careers. Seven new junior investigators, Dr. Tom Lewis (MSU-Billings), Dr. Michael Gilbert (UM-Western), Dr. Grant Hokit (Carroll College), Brian Stiff (Chief Dull Knife College), Neva TallBear (Little Big Horn College), William Bell (Fort Belknap College), and Dr. Roger Dilts (Salish Kootenai College) join the network as Project Leaders in the Research Core. Six of the Core's projects focus on educational outreach and developing the student pipeline in the biomedical sciences. All network researchers have access to shared facilities, equipment, and training at MSU-Bozeman and UM-Missoula. The long-term goal is to position these investigators to be competitive for their own NIH funding. In addition to these research projects, two research sub-groups continue to flourish and provide visible mechanisms for providing training, collaborations, and research support for the Project Leaders: the Big Sky Yeast Group and the Bioinformatics Users Group (in the Bioinformatics and Genomics Core).